Game Day Live Blog: Kansas vs St. John's | NCAA Tournament Second Round

Today, two of the most accomplished coaches in college basketball history will square off in the NCAA Tournament with a chance to move on to the Sweet 16. Kansas and St. John's are entering this matchup with high expectations after winning their Round of 64 games.

Here at Kansas On SI, we will be covering the game with live updates of the score and highlights. Refresh this page periodically for constant score changes.

Mar 13, 2026; Kansas City, MO, USA; Kansas Jayhawks head coach Bill Self reacts to game play during the first half against the Houston Cougars at T-Mobile Center. Mandatory Credit: William Purnell-Imagn Images | William Purnell-Imagn Images

Kansas vs. St. John's Live Updates: First Half

Pregame - Same starting five for the Jayhawks today. Melvin Council Jr., Darryn Peterson, and Tre White in the backcourt with Bryson Tiller and Flory Bidunga in the frontcourt.

18:57 - Bryce Hopkins and Darryn Peterson get the scoring started with a pair of 3-pointers early on. The Jayhawks need a big day from the freshman phenom. Kansas and St. John's are tied, 3-3.

17:29 - All the scoring thus far have come from Hopkins and Peterson from beyond the arc. Another pair of treys from each player. Kansas and St. John's are tied, 6-6.

15:44 - A very ugly start from the Jayhawks aside from Peterson's pair of threes. Council looks out of control offensively and is continuing to struggle from the field. St. John's leads, 11-6.

14:38 - Two fouls early on for Bidunga, who will be subbed out for Paul Mbiya. Kansas cannot figure out how to inbound the ball on SJU's press and is being outrebounded badly. This one could get ugly fast. St. John's leads, 11-6.

11:47 - Elmarko Jackson just missed a wide-open one-handed dunk on a fast-break. The Jayhawks have not come out ready to play tonight, and nobody besides Peterson and Mbiya have scored a point. St. John's leads, 16-8.

9:03 - The offense in this game is appalling right now. Both teams are shooting a combined 10-for-39 from the field, and KU is somehow matching the rebound total 15 apiece right now. It feels like KU should be down by 15, so we'll consider the current score a win. St. John's leads, 16-12.

7:29 - Kansas only trails by two after the second-to-last TV timeout of the half. Bidunga is back in the game and just drained a deep two at the top of the key as the shot clock dwindled down. St. John's leads, 16-14.

5:35 - After a few St. John's baskets, Bidunga cuts the deficit to three points with a line drive post hook. KU continues to hang in there. St. John's leads, 23-20.

2:25 - Peterson just blocked Liotopoulos' 3-point attempt and was fouled on the other end. He'll shoot a one-and-one at the free throw line after the timeout, though he was concerningly holding his knee when he went down. St. John's leads, 25-22.

1:18 - St. John's hits back-to-back threes to go back up by three possessions. It has attempted 23 threes, the most in a half since Rick Pitino was hired as head coach. KU's philosophy to let them shoot has worked from the most part, but its offense has been dreadful and isn't doing any favors. St. John's leads, 31-24.

Halftime - The Jayhawks go into halftime down by eight. Both offenses have struggled mightily, but SJU has grabbed eight offensive rebounds to Kansas' four. It's not hard to see that the Red Storm are thoroughly outplaying their opponent right now, so all KU can do is hope for some Darryn Peterson heroics following the break. St. John's leads, 34-26.

Second Half

17:26 - Bryce Hopkins is killing the Jayhawks from beyond the arc with four 3-pointers, but Council is starting to find a rhythm by playing downhill. A pair of free throws brings KU within five points a few minutes into the second half. St. John's leads, 37-32.

13:32 - Tre White has been relieved of his inbounding duties after another careless pass. St. John's has now made 10 threes and is starting to pull away for good. Kansas players continue to make inexplicable plays with the ball in their hands, but somehow and some way, the team is staying alive with its defense. St. John's leads, 47-37.

How to Watch Kansas vs. St. John's Basketball

Time: 4:15 p.m CT
Channel: CBS
Link: Watch CBS